Public to weigh in on designations under federal Antiquities Act

Formal comment period to begin May 12

May 08, 2017

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Interior Department will begin accepting public comment May 12 on a list of national monuments designated since 1996 by three presidents under the American Antiquities Act of 1906.

The public comment period–the first ever for Antiquities Act consideration–is part of a federal review of all monuments of more than 100,000 acres made by presidents during the past 21 years. The review also will include designations where Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke determines that the designation was made without sufficient public outreach and coordination with stakeholders.

Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument. Photo by U.S. Bureau of Land Management

President Donald Trump ordered the review on April 26, giving Zinke 45 days to submit interim recommendations and 120 days to submit suggestions for legislation or recommend that the president reduce the size of monuments larger than 100,000 acres or rescind the designations altogether.

The American Motorcyclist Association supports the review as a way to determine whether some monument designations included more land than necessary. The AMA also believes presidents should solicit input from the public before making such designations, even though the law does not require it.

“When government action at any level infringes on access to responsible motorized access on public lands, the AMA is going to stand for the rights of motorcyclists and all-terrain-vehicle riders,” said Wayne Allard, AMA vice president of government relations. “In this case, we want to ensure that America’s treasures are adequately protected, while maintaining access to nearby trails and roads.”

The Antiquities Act grants the president authority to designate national monuments to protect “historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures and other objects of historic or scientific interest” that are on federal lands. The law limits the size of the designations to “the smallest area compatible with proper care and management of the objects to be protected.”

Congress may override the presidential designations. But the legal power of a president to rescind monument designations is untested. At least one president has used his authority to resize monuments designated by a previous administration.

Comments on the monuments now under review may be submitted after May 12 at www.regulations.gov by entering “DOI-2017-0002” in the Search bar and clicking “Search,” or by mail to Monument Review, MS-1530, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 C St. NW, Washington, DC 20240.

Written comments relating to the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah must be submitted within 15 days of publication of a notice in the Federal Register. Written comments relating to all other designations under review must be submitted within 60 days of that date.

“Today’s action, initiating a formal public comment process finally gives a voice to local communities and states when it comes to Antiquities Act monument designations,” Zinke said in a press release. “There is no pre-determined outcome on any monument. I look forward to hearing from and engaging with local communities and stakeholders as this process continues.”

The National Monuments being initially reviewed are listed in the following tables:

NATIONAL MONUMENTS BEING INITIALLY REVIEWED PURSUANT TO CRITERIA IN EXECUTIVE ORDER 13792

Monument

Location

Year(s)

Acreage

Basin and Range

Nevada

2015

703,585

Bears Ears

Utah

2016

1,353,000

Berryessa Snow Mountain

California

2015

330,780

Canyons of the Ancients

Colorado

2000

175,160

Carrizo Plain

California

2001

204,107

Cascade Siskiyou

Oregon

2000/2017

100,000

Craters of the Moon

Idaho

1924/2000

737,525

Giant Sequoia

California

2000

327,760

Gold Butte

Nevada

2016

296,937

Grand Canyon-Parashant

Arizona

2000

1,014,000

Grand Staircase-Escalante

Utah

1996

1,700,000

Hanford Reach

Washington

2000

194,450.93

Ironwood Forest

Arizona

2000

128,917

Mojave Trails

California

2016

1,600,000

Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks

New Mexico

2014

496,330

Rio Grande del Norte

New Mexico

2013

242,555

Sand to Snow

California

2016

154,000

San Gabriel Mountains

California

2014

346,177

Sonoran Desert

Arizona

2001

486,149

Upper Missouri River Breaks

Montana

2001

377,346

Vermilion Cliffs

Arizona

2000

279,568

NATIONAL MONUMENTS BEING REVIEWED TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE DESIGNATION OR EXPANSION WAS MADE WITHOUT ADEQUATE PUBLIC OUTREACH AND COORDINATION WITH RELEVANT STAKEHOLDERS

Katahadin Woods and Waters

Maine

2016

87,563

The Department of the Interior seeks public comments related to: (1) Whether national monuments in addition to those listed above should be reviewed because they were designated or expanded after January 1, 1996 “without adequate public outreach and coordination with relevant stakeholders;” and (2) the application of factors (i) through (vii) set forth above to the listed national monuments or to other Presidential designations or expansions of designations meeting the criteria of the Executive Order. With respect to factor (vii), comments should address other factors the Secretary might consider for this review.

In a separate but related process, certain Marine National Monuments will also be reviewed. As directed by section 4 of Executive Order 13795 of April 28, 2017, “Implementing An America-First Offshore Energy Strategy” (82 FR 20815, May 3, 2017), the Department of Commerce will lead the review of the Marine National Monuments in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior. To assist in that consultation, the Secretary will accept comments related to the application of factors (i) through (vii) in Executive

Order 13792 as set forth above to the following Marine National Monuments:

MARINE NATIONAL MONUMENTS BEING REVIEWED PURSUANT TO EXECUTIVE ORDERS 13795 AND 13792